“The Crucible” begins with Betty, a girl who is suspected to be a victim of witchcraft, unconscious in her bed. Abigail, who lives under the same roof, initially denies she knows anything about Betty’s condition. However, when Tituba, the slave, later admits she was communicating with the devil, Abigail also confesses to avoid condemnation. This single event creates frantic uncertainty and suspicion within Salem. Those who were once considered pure, like Rebecca Nurse, are accused with little to no proof. When people are unsure of their safety, no one is trusted.
In this play, when one is accused of being a witch, the court only sees one truth and her fate depends on whether or not she reveals that truth. This embodies the idea of aletheia. No one considers that maybe there is no truth to be unveiled. Those who confess, despite their innocence, are not sentenced to death, but those who deny that they worship the devil are hanged. The people of Salem claim that the court is just, but it is clear that they do not wish for the truth. What they hope for is assurance during a time of chaos. They want to solidify an unstable regime and feel that they have some control over the outcomes of their society.
This also brings about the issue of power, which Abigail takes advantage of. Although she took part of witchcraft, her confession cleanses her of all guilt to the public eye. Later on, she begins to accuse indiscriminately. During this time of fear, people are easily persuaded. Because of this, she gains respect and no one questions her. The more she accuses, the more power she gains to ruin her enemies, which also silences the innocent who wish testify against her.
Angela--
ReplyDeleteYour use of aletheia to describe the type of truth the court’s of Salem produced in Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible” is brilliant. You so wisely point out that fact that “no one considers that maybe there is no truth to be unveiled.” You then go on to further point out that so many of the individuals who are accused are so terrified that they are lead to produce false confessions. John Proctor points this out within the book stating in regards to the false confessions, “ and why not, if they must hang for denyin' it? There are them that will swear to anything before they'll hang: Have you never thought of that?” (Miller 65).
This concept reminds me so vividly of the Abu Ghraib documentary in that the individuals that were captured and held in the prison, many times, were just innocent bystanders that were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. These individuals, even if they wished that they could give their captors something, had nothing to give other than false confessions and their dignities. This also brings about the concept we spoke of in class that the less a victim knows the more torture they endure. You would think that it would be the reverse but in these cases, it held true. I find the case of the Salem witch trials and the information you point out so particularly haunting in that parallels to today’s societies are not hard to draw.
Great analysis, Angela! I liked how you noted that a particularly interesting plot device is the inability of the townspeople to deny the presence of witchcraft. Since it is believed that only the person inflicted by witchcraft and the witch him/herself know the true identity of the witch, it is impossible for other people “outside” this witchery to deny accusations. Therefore, it is difficult for the court to attribute any truth to Proctor’s claim that Abigail and the girls are lying until Mary (who has claimed to be a victim of witchcraft) comes forward. By that time, however, people have already been hanged because of their association with witchcraft and the court is unwilling to present itself as fraudulent.
ReplyDeleteAdditionally, as you pointed out, the power structure of the play is also extremely significant. People that otherwise would have very little power in society, such as Abigail (a young, single woman,) are able to achieve great amounts of power through fueling the witchcraft fire by accusing others.